The next day around 1pm, the bride and all the lady guests who wanted mendi had it applied. Some ladies left the mendi on for several hours. I scraped mine off after two hours and without penalty, because the mendi stained very nicely. After some shopping, which for me was an exercise in daydreaming while dodging traffic, we returned to our sanctuary-house for a nap and fun visiting with our hosts, which was so enjoyable we missed our opportunity to buy bangles in another event at the wedding house.
The next morning we had the vatna ceremony, which was more lively and interesting than the bangles ceremony that followed in the afternoon, which was really long. The ‘vatna’ was conducted by ladies in the family, and all the ladies participated in some way. During the vatna, Neha, the bride, sat on a stool in front of a chalk and marigold design in the courtyard. A few ladies held a blanket over Neha’s head, forming a makeshift tent. First, Neha ties some string with bells onto the wrist of a few ladies. Then several of the ladies reach into a silver vessel filled with paste colored a bright yellow from tumeric powder, take the paste and smear it onto Neha’s face, arms, and legs. Ladies laughed, and the atmosphere felt lighthearted.
The bangles ceremony was conducted by a Hindu priest, called a pundit. Everyone sat somewhat quietly for a long time, not typical of Indian functions, but the gathering eventually tired of quiet watching. At one point the eldest auntie (she had the role of grandma here) started singing a song right in the middle of the pundit's (priest) sanskrit chants. Some other ladies joined in, while others giggled. For a few minutes the courtyard buzzed with a bizarre cacophony. The event ended with Neha receiving about 20 red and gold bangles on each arm, and the photographers took numerous photos of relieved, hungry, exhausted, and happy family.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment